Parolee charged for alleged Desert Hot Springs vehicle burglary

A parolee pleaded not guilty today to felony charges stemming from June and July vehicle burglaries and thefts in Desert Hot Springs.

Moises Mazariegos, 25, of Desert Hot Springs, is facing burglary, vehicle theft and evading arrest charges. He’s being held in lieu of $222,500 bail and will return to court Aug. 10 for a felony settlement conference.

About 7:45 a.m. Friday, Mazariegos was spotted walking near the area of Fourth Street and Cactus Drive, then fled on foot when officers tried to talk with him, according to police. When he was detained in the 66400 block of Fourth Street, officers found with “a very real-looking replica handgun in the front of his waistband,” said Desert Hot Springs police Detective Christopher Saucier.

He was also allegedly carrying tools used for committing vehicle burglaries and car thefts, along with “numerous items stolen in a vehicle burglary reported in the area shortly before he was arrested,” the detective said.

The criminal complaint filed Tuesday indicates that an iPad and checkbooks were among those items. He was also found with methamphetamine, according to the complaint, and is charged with stealing two cars in June and July.

Mazariegos is additionally accused of violating parole stemming from a 2015 conviction for burglary, evading arrest and vehicle theft.

In July 2015, Mazariegos led police on a high-speed pursuit throughout the Coachella Valley in a stolen pickup truck and was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty, court records show. It was unclear how much of that sentence he served.